The demand for sustainable buildings is doubled compared to last year

Autodesk and the American Institute of architects - AIA - have announced the results of the Green Index 2008, an annual survey that measures how the AIA members carried out the practice of sustainable design, as well as their views and concerns about the movement and trends of sustainable construction. The index of this year shows an increase in the improvement and acceptance of the sustainable design by the architects and the owners of the buildings. In addition, demand from customers of the architects of sustainable buildings over the last year has doubled as well as also noted a positive change in the attitude of the architects of maximum respect to climate change.

One of the most important data of the Green Index 2008 is that 42 percent of architects reported that customers were requesting more sustainable building elements in the majority of their projects, with 47 per cent of clients demanding sustainable elements to improve their projectsThis represents an increase of 15 per cent from 2007. The customer demand continues to be the main indicator of ecological construction, with 66 per cent of the respondents architects that confirm that demand is the main influence on his practice for sustainable building. Architects believe that the basic reasons why customers apply for ecological construction are to reduce the operating costs (60 percent), marketing (52 per cent) and the demands of market (21 per cent from 10 per cent in 2007). The full report of Green Index of Autodesk and the AIA is available at www.autodesk.com/green.

"" We are very encouraged to see the continuous rise in demand for sustainable construction and the way in which architects are responding to this demand increasing its sustainable design practice"says Jay Bhatt, Vice President of Autodesk AEC Solutions.""Autodesk is committed to developing software that promotes the sustainable design of easier and more efficiently, and with this survey is that 41 percent of the architects used this software to predict and assess the environmental impact in the life cycle of their buildings".

Green Index 2008 shows an increase in the improvement and acceptance of the sustainable design by the architects and the owners of the buildings.

In response to the increase in the demand for sustainable building by customers, the architects have increased their sustainable design practices. According to the survey, 34 percent of the architects are incorporating now covers sustainable or vegetable ceiling by more than half of their projects, comparing it with the 7 percent given in 2007. Also, a 39 percent use renewable sources of energy available in the same site, such as solar, wind, geothermal, hydraulic low impact, biomass or biogas in more than half of the designs of new buildings, contrasting with just 6 per cent as did it last year. Architects noted a significant increase in its use of the software's design over the past year to help them to predict and assess the costs of heating, ventilation and air conditioning (39 per cent from 31 per cent in 2007), the modeling of conduits of energy and the analysis of the baselines (33 per cent, from 29 percent in 2007) and to evaluate and explore alternative building materials (35 per cent, from 20 per cent in 2007).

The American architects meet the same standards as their European and Asian counterparts in sustainable design over the past year. In this sense, Autodesk also conducts surveys on sustainable building to architects Japan, Italy and United Kingdom, in partnership with organizations that include the Japan Institute of architects and the Royal Institute of British architects. When asked why their clients were interested in sustainable building, the architects from all countries were agreed it was because of the desire to reduce operating costs. The members of the American Institute of architects have the leadership worldwide in the belief that the architects should practice sustainable design wherever possible. 89 Percent of the architects of United States were in line with this fact, followed by 88% of the United Kingdom, a 73 per cent in Italy and 59 per cent in Japan. However, the reasons for the construction of sustainable buildings vary in different countries. In United States are carried out these practices in response to the demand (66 percent), while in the United Kingdom and Japan the main factors are the rules and regulatory requirements (75 and 64 percent respectively) and in Italythe growing increase in the costs of energy (70%).